Seer

Apollon, the king who maintains his oracle in Delphi, neither tells nor conceals, but signifies to the Sibyl and she, with her raging mouth, uttering things solemn, rude, and unadorned, ranges her voice across a thousand years.

— Herakleitos of Ephesus, Fragments 11-12.

Seers may be male or female, presenting a rare opportunity for respect and societal advancement to those women gifted with second sight, and extending tolerance even to gender-fluid Tieresias. The capacity to foretell future events can run in families, whether through genetics or the continued favor of Apollon, the acknowledged source of all prophetic vision.

Notable Seers

• Tieresias
• Manto
• Idmon
• Phineus
• Amphiaraos
• Mopsos
• Kassandra

Career

Qualifications

Prophecy is a rare skill. Although many people are daimon-blessed with the ability to pierce the veil between the natural and supernatural, most often in dreams, only a select few can do this consistently, at will, on behalf of others, and be able to accurately interpret the resultant signs and signals.

Career Progression

Those who manifest prophetic skill in childhood are given over to a temple of Apollon for an apprenticeship, if a master is available, or if not, for the best cultivation the priesthood can provide. Those who acquire the skill at as adults, most frequently through some supernatural trauma, may be called upon to found their own temples or hermitages. Either way, a unique route to becoming a full seer is revealed to each individual seer through his or her craft.

Payment & Reimbursement

Seers with a solid reputation are well compensated for consultations.

Other Benefits

More respect and autonomy than generally available to other professions. Seers set their own hours and terms, operate outside the authoritarian structure of society. Although they may be low-born, kings often come groveling to them!

Perception

Purpose

Every expedition or military force will employ a seer to advise on tactics, timing, and what actions must be performed to win the favor of the theoi. Other seers will establish a territory in which they provide consultation, or may be appointed as advisors to a given monarch.

Social Status

Respected by all, while they remain in Apollon's good graces, but dismissed and ignored if they ever fall into the daimon's disfavor.

Alternative Names

Oracle, Pythia (in Delphi), Sibyl, Prophet/Prophetess

Type

Arcane

Demand

The supply of seers will never meet demand.

Legality

Beyond the capacity or desire of mortal authorities to regulate.